Dear Editor:
It’s not too late to stop the Boeing C-17 plane from continuing to be built in Long Beach. (“Knabe Statement on Closure of Boeing C-17 Facility in Long Beach,” 9/26/13)
I suggest we convert them internally to huge water retardant-dropping tankers to fight wildfires in our nation by creating a super U.S. Air Force fire-fighting armada to fight, control and extinguish wildfires, wherever they may occur in America. These planes can carry a huge load of fire retardant fluid to stop wildfires . Not one or two, I think we need about 50-100 C-17 tankers to stop wildfires from advancing into our residential and forest areas.
This could be a good peacetime use of our Air Force personnel by using reserve and retired pilots in conjunction with firefighters on the ground. It could be called our U.S. Air Force Firefighters.
Think about it. A massive armada of retardant-loaded C-17s covering a huge area in one drop, then going back for a refill with more retardant, until the wildfire is completely stopped or controlled, not going on into days, weeks and months, as has happened recently.
We fight everything else in this world, so it is about time and way overdue to use our peacetime pilots to do good for America in a new way. Funding can be accomplished by cutting foreign aid money we send to yoyo countries that hate and want to destroy U.S. infidels.
We waste more money taking care of the rest of the world that it’s high time to take care of number one, the United States of America.
Joe Cvetko
Bellflower